Kurrikulumontwerpbeginsels vir 'n brugkurses vir volwassenes

Abstract:

The training and development opportunities available in Human Resources in a country play an important role regarding the growth and progress of such a country and its people. The parameters wherein training and development is conducted determine to a large extend the direction the country takes towards the efficient productivity of individuals, In South Africa, in the past, the political system of apartheid, which created unequal opportunities between different races, played a major adverse role in the education and training facilities of its employable population. As a result common education standards became a victim of political expediency, and the school system created a forum of unequal education. After research conducted by the Human Sciences Research Council in 1980 to investigate the education system in South Africa it was concluded that it is impossible to implement a system focused on equal quality education overnight. It is not until after the first multi-cultural election in the history of South Africa in 1994 that this situation started changing. The National Qualifications Framework and The South African Qualifications Authority were established. That brought about major change in the education and training system in the country, and it also shifted the emphasis to lifelong learning. It became apparent that for the quickest beneficial results a program of adult education had to be initiated to work hand in hand with the more gradual development of equal education at undergraduate levels. The shift that needs to be made from the traditional school system to the training of adults is however a difficult one. Adult education is not yet established in South Africa. The problems addressed in this study are based on whether adults who have completed their education can after a period of absence respond to formal training. There is a definite need to mentally and psychologically prepare an individual to return to the classroom situation. The aim of this study is to establish principles to design a curriculum through which this gap can be bridged. In order to research this issue a qualitative study was undertaken. The study concentrated on: (1) the adult learner; (2) formal training; and (3) curriculum design. An adult is described as a mentally healthy person of seventeen or older. Formal training is defined as all the training regardless if it is part or not of the formal school system. The training should be planned, the progress of the learner should be monitored or evaluated and the learner should obtain a qualification. The phrases curriculum and curriculum design are also researched and to get the holistic picture two important research projects of the Human Sciences Research Council are discussed. The one is the research project conducted on the education system in 1980 and the other one is the research project on the National Qualifications Framework conducted in 1995. In addition to the research, target group interviews were conducted with a group of previously disadvantaged individuals to determine their training needs and to use it as underlying information to establish principles for the design of a curriculum. A focus group interview was also conducted with experts in the field of adult training. Their input was also converted to categories and eventually to principles. The outcome of this study is eight principles for the design of a curriculum for a bridging program for adults who return to formal training. These eight principles are eventually incorporated into a curriculum design model. The model developed from the eight established principles is based on the interrelationship between the parties involved, namely, the trainer, the trainee, and the employer. The curriculum, the goals and the objectives of the training program as well as the evaluation and progress of the trainee are all organised in a joint process of continuing progress, bearing in mind the diverse requirements and aspirations of the parties. In this model the institutional, operational, and personal needs of the individual are integrated into a functional precept.